hunger paynes

Dayton’s newest restaurant, Hunger Paynes Beer & Wine Garden has quietly opened inside the Dayton Mall. Andrew Payne, owner/operator the of Hunger Paynes food truck has been working on this for well over a year. The concept is simple 12 local beers on tap, Ohio wines and of course the croquettes made popular on his food truck.

Hunger Paynes on the first floor of Dayton Mall

Andrew Payne uploading the menu on the first day of business.

Asking Andrew how he came up with the concept he shared that the owners of the Dayton Mall, Washington Prime Group, actually approached him with this concept. They have done a couple of similar projects in their other properties, in Muncie they have a place with 4 beers on tap that’s about a third of the size of this one and they wanted to pilot a bigger concept here in Dayton. Andrew signed the lease in August, but there were a lot of delays, as this is a pretty new concept and it took the mall, Macy’s and Hunger Paynes some time to work out all of the logistics.

Wine Slushy

Payne, who started his food service career at the Wright Patterson Air Force Base Officers Club as a busboy at 15, has worked in many different food environments. He was part of the opening team of Quaker Steak & Lube, worked at NCR Country Club, Cracker Barrel. He went on to get his culinary degree from Hocking College. He came back and opened the Filling Station with some friends and then went on to become a sous chef before moving up to Executive Chef at both the Nutter Center and the Dayton Convention Center. He left the convention center when he opened the Hunger Paynes truck in 2013, though he still goes back to help form time to time when they have big events. Andrew’s wife and business partner Amie is a CPA and that makes her the perfect person to handle the books and paperwork for Hunger Paynes. Also part of the team for this new venture, Missy the general manager and Adam who will manage the kitchen.

The “stupid awesome pretzels”

Andrew explained how the concept of just serving local beer on their 12 taps was decided and he said “it’s my way to give back to all the local breweries that were so good to me and all the other local food trucks. We’ll also feature local wines, when possible and the sweet Hunter’s Red from the Winery at Versailles was the inspiration for our signature Wine Slushy.” They’ll also carry a Moscato from Italy, and some Napa Valley wines as well. They will also carry rotating bottled beers and feature cans of soda. Plans for a happy hour are still under way and will be added soon.

The croquettes are the mainstay of the menu but you’ll also find a a cheese and meat platter with some upscale cured meats, a cheese only platter featuring a white truffle goat truffle pretzel bites as well as a couple of salad options and wraps. Payne shares that they’ll have to judge the appetites of his guest, and will make changes to the menu as needed.

chicken bacon ranch wrap

The Grand Opening Celebration for this 42 seat eatery is Saturday, June 9th. The first 100 guests that order a beer will receive a logo’d pint glass and Payne shares there are over $10,000 worth of give-aways planned, including some mini fidget spinner bottle openers. The Mall has booked live music from 1-6pm.

Mac & Cheese croquettes

The Wine & Beer Garden will open one hour after the mall opens and stay open one hour after the mall stores close, allowing the 500 employees of the Dayton Mall to have the option for an after work drink and snack. Hours may change after they see what the flow of business is like and Payne shared he has plans for painting parties and trivia to be added soon.

Payne also operates The American Croquette Company, making and distributing modern forms of the classic croquette for sale to restaurants. You can find these locally at Kings Table and JD Legends, with plans for broader distribution in the works.

And don’t worry, the Hunger Paynes Food Truck will continue to operate as usual.

This FRIDAY July 15th, at 5pm, 18 local food trucks will descend on the Bella Villa Hall on County Line Rd, around the corner from the Greene. If you have been to the Italian Fall Festival, then you are familiar with this venue. But Friday showcases different activities and outside vendors. It promises to be a fun filled, family friendly event and a wonderful evening.

HERE ARE 20 REASON’S to COME TO THE FOOD TRUCK RALLY at SONS of ITALY’S BELLA VILLA HALL in Beavercreek/Kettering

1 ~ ZOMBIE DOGZ WILL INTRODUCE TWO NEW DOG FLAVORS:
Garlic inspired for sure, the flavors are super secret and are being finalized as you read this. No one is telling, not even the zombies!

2 ~ THE HOLY CANNOLI:
A deep fried cannoli made at the Sons of Italy booth. It is a gooey, creamy walk down dream street. So rich and wonderful, it is like a religious experience.

The Garlic Mohawk Burger

3 ~ BELLA SORELLA’S “BIG FELLA” PEPPERONI PIZZA:
Have you tried their hand made dough, stone baked pizza? Fresh ingredients and that good Italian flavor, makes this a MUST EAT at Garlic Fest Weekend !

4 ~ THE “SPICY CHICKEN WITH WHITE RICE” from BOURBON STREET GRILL: Be prepared to launch your tastebuds to the moon on this one. A perfect, not too spicy blend of shredded chicken and sauce, poured over white rice. So addicting you will want seconds. Warning! – you will crave this stuff the next week, and we are not responsible.

Fresh Pizza from Bella Sorella Pizza Co.

5 ~ BEER TRUCKS and INCREDIBLE FOOD VARIETY IN ONE PLACE:
Beer trucks? YES ! 18 food vendors with various menus? This will give you over 100 food choices. Hello foodies, you have found your paradise… GarlicFest weekend be thy name !

6 ~ “THE ONION STRAW BURGER” from THE HORSELESS BUGGY EATERY:
One of the best burgers in Dayton, hands down. A pile of crunchy onion straws, on a thick, juicy fresh burger. Awww man give us one now to sink our teeth into.

Peanut Butter Cupcake from Go Cupcake

7 ~ “THE WICKED SWEET BREAD” from THE WICKED WICH’ of DAYTON FOOD TRUCK:
Sweet, cinnamon sprinkled bread, with a sweet drizzled icing. It makes for a buttery, cinnamon taste and a match made in heaven. So simple, so good ….

9 ~ “GARLIC INFUSED CRAB MACARONI n CHEESE” from PA’s PORK:
New Item! King Crab, macaroni, cheese and Italian Parsely on top. Take a bite then slap yourself to get that silly look off your face. Oh, it’s that damn good…

10 ~ QUESADILLAS at THE PAINTED PEPPER FOOD TRUCK:
Juicy, flavorful and loaded, these quesadillas are fantastic food on the go. The Texas Caviar chicken quesadilla is a fave… but so are the wings and corncakes…so many MUST EATS, so little time. It is hard to nail down just one item from this great truck.

12 ~ “THE MAC n CHEESE CROQUETTES” from HUNGER PAYNES:
Mac & Cheese Croquettes with Garlic, Smoked Gouda, Cheddar, Green Onions, and Garlic Sour Cream Sauce. Flavored croquettes, are the scrumptuous staple that launched their food truck. You gotta try these. We are excited for more great eats from Andy and his crew.

White Hots and Red Hots from Kowalski Hots

13 ~ “THE PEANUT BUTTER CUP CUPCAKE” from GO CUPCAKE:
Rich and chocolatey. What else goes better together? Indulge in one of the best sweet treats at the rally. One of those bites that you have to sit down and just take in all the flavor.

Remember hot isn’t spicy – it is short for Hot Dog in this case. And these casings are authentic hot dog brands only found in upstate New York. Zweigels and Hoffmans are just two of the brands he offers.

16 ~ EMPANADAS from EL MESON:
They have so much good food to offer it is hard to pick just one. The empanadas are a great pocket of flavor on the go at a rally. Their cornbread pattie style Arepas are also tremendous.

Oh boy, this might be the mother of all sandwiches at the rally. Roast Beef on a bun served with lettuce, tomato and a horseradish aoli, this promises to be a huge hit while they last!

18 ~ “THE STREET STYLE CHICKEN GYRO” from GREEK STREET FOOD TRUCK:
A one of a kind gyro with pickled onions and a one of a kind tzatziki sauce. We cannot reiterate enough that you must get the chicken gyro and get it “street style.” The “shrimp gyros street style” are a lighter take on a great thing. Opa!

Chicken on a spindle at Greek Street Food Truck

19 ~ “THE TURTLE SUNDAE” from RITTERS FROZEN CUSTARD:
Hot fudge, caramel and toasted pecans with vanilla custard adorn this sundae. Just sinful, and yummy. Turn out the lights and call the law, we dont care if we ever get well!

20 ~ “THE GARLIC MOHAWK BURGER” from MOHAWK FREESTYLE GRILL:
It is a massive creation from our pal chef Aaron who does it all to the max. Get a napkin, because it is a delicious, “goodness drippin on the chin” kinda time. It is a rowdyFood Adventureon a bun.

There you have it, take a bow if you can eat all of the above items in a night. We have a feeling you might need some help, so bring your friends out and share some bites. That’s

Hunger Payne’s Mac n Cheese Croquettes

what a fun food truck rally is all about!

HERE’S THE SKINNY ON HOW TO GO:

— WHEN: JULY 15th from 5pm til 9pm

— WHERE: 2625 COUNTY LINE RD, BEAVERCREEK, OHIO at the BELLA VILLA HALL

ATTENTION FOODIES !! One hundred thousand people will descend into downtown Centerville this Monday July 4th for the Americana Festival.

Sure there is a 5 k run early at 7:30am

You bet there is a parade at 10am.

And who could forget fireworks at 10pm later that night.

But Food Adventures has advanced notice on something close to our hearts… FOOD VENDORS !! What restaurants are going to be in attendance? What to eat? We got it all for you right here. We will make order of this crowded party of patriotism. So sit in your lawn chair and listen to this scoop on the best eats at this festival

Pork Chop Sandwich from BlackJack Grill

celebrating our independence!

HERE’S THE SKINNY:

— This is the 43rd Annual Americana Festival

— From 9:30am – 5pm is the Street Fair. It runs from the instersection of 48 and 725, down to Bills Donut Shop, and will be filled with FOOD vendors.

— There are also food vendors at Benham’s Grove and tucked back into Activity Center Park in the kids play area.

Crawfish Etouffe from Cajun Specialties – A MUST EAT !

— The key to this festival is to GET THERE EARLY… or go very late. Food crowds are lightest at 10-11am and 4-5pm.

— Parking is rough, you may have to walk a few blocks, so suck it up buttercup

— We suggest bringing a light lawn chair with you, so you can go off to the side and sit and eat comfortably.

Kowalski’s hots will be grilling Upstate NY brand dogs all day with coney sauce

So now we get to the meat of the story – where to go, what to eat, who to drink. The Big Ragu, Hungry Jax and Chef House have decades of experience at this festival and will be in the mix again this year for an epic Food Adventure ! We have some of the food vendors who are going to be in attendance, and list some of our faves and best foodstuffs.

— KOWALSKI’S HOTS: One of our faves. This guy has exclusive brands of upstate New York made hot dogs. Get the Red Hot with coney sauce.. it isn’t spicy it is just a red colored, big hot dog. Dont want a dog? Get a “Hamburg,” Rochester NY Style with coney sauce

— LAROSA’S PIZZERIA: The must eat is a slice of pepperoni pizza. Take yourself back to Kings Island 1982 in one swift bite.,…

— MOM’S HOMEMADE GOODIES: A family that makes the most incredible hand tied soft pretzels. Get a pie too !

A Super Taco from Pita Pockets

— NELLY’S CHICKEN: The “must eat” is the half chicken, it has that amazing, cooked over charcoal taste. Get yucca fries if you really want an incredible treat,

— OLD TEXAS SODA COMPANY: Handcrafted Root Beer is the must drink here. On a hot summers day, you will down two of these without blinking.

Fronana scooping up some great flavors

— PITA POCKETS: Try the super taco. It is a tostada shell loaded. Good eats, good street food.

Each Thursday, for the rest of October, The Dogs Breath Tavern in Kettering will be featuring an event called “Buckets & Trucks.” On these nights, a couple of featured food trucks will invade the parking lot on 1912 E. Whipp Rd., and the bar will host domestic buckets of beer for 11 bucks.

Come out to Dog’s Breath Tavern for a chance to visit two great food trucks, and get some drink specials. Please note that menus are subject to change and that new creations may be better than anything we have tasted yet! We hope we gave you a tip on what to look for for a great Food Adventure this Thursday evening.

So take advantage of “Buckets and Trucks” every Thursday in October at Dog’s Breath Tavern.